Mailing a postage paid package... Do you get a reciept?

[descovy]

You know how if you order something online and they send a postage-paid shipping label for returns?

I usually use the UPS store as it is super close to my house. They scan the barcode and create a reciept. But today I had a box to return and walked into the nearest " postal plus" from my kids' dance school.

This was a local-run joint. The guy behind the counter said "just dropping off?". That was it and he put it in a pile.

I went to the car, sat there a minute. What if he didn't ship it? Steal the contents? Lose the package? It isn't "in the system" and likely not picked up until tomorrow. If it didn't arrive at its destination, I'd have no proof I ever sent them to begin with.

I went back in and asked for my box back. The guy looked at me like I was crazy. He did give me my box back, but said no worries, I could track the tracking number. Which is true... Once it is shipped! But leaving it in his cart of boxes, the tracking number hadn't been activated.

I took it to a different UPS store ( close to this errand). Never been in it before. Sure enough, the clerk scanned the barcode and printed the reciept no questions asked.

So was I super paranoid to get my box back at the first location? Or am I just super spoiled at the UPS store?

 

[Imzadi]

No, not paranoid. One year the post office stole a package I was sending back to Victoria Secret. It was in the days before delivery confirmation. So there was no way to track it, unless I had bought registered mail. Since it had a pre-paid shipping label on it, it didn't occur to me to order insurance on it. Some postal worker's relative or spouse got a wonderful silk blazer (via ME) that year.

They even laughed at me, when I went back to try to file a claim on a "lost package." They said maybe Victoria Secret was lying and said they never received it back. Why would Victoria Secret lie? I was exchanging an item, not trying to get a refund. They made the sale either way. But without a receipt that it was sent out at the post office, I had no proof. Without postal insurance, the post office wasn't even out money replacing the item. Brilliant! A crooked postal worker could steal, and it doesn't even affect the place he works at.

Interestingly enough, Victoria Secret changed their return directions some time later, saying to use UPS, not to send items back via regular USPS mail, as insurance & tracking is included on ALL UPS packages. I guess they figured out they had outfitted too many postal workers or their relatives in stolen clothes.

After that, once when I returned another item to some other store and their label didn't provide any tracking. I paid the $6 shipping myself, in order to get tracking & delivery confirmation, rather than lose a $50 item, which might not get delivered.

To answer your question, UPS always scans immediately & hands me a receipt when they take a package from me. So does Fedex.